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Invasions
Working Article: Not Complete Invasion is a unique game mechanic in the "Souls" series. The player can elect to invade another player's campaign and contribute greatly to its difficulty. The motivation to invade another player's world may differ from person to person, but ultimately the goal is to harass or destroy the host. Unlike Dueling, invasions should focus on maximizing the player character's damage output to absurd levels and creating situations that greatly disadvantage the host. Or, at the very least, have some type of build that is capable of exploiting the Host's probable weaknesses. This may come in the form of strategy, or overwhelming brute force. This guide gives a comprehensive overview of strategies that can be applied in all aspects of invading. It will cover strategies specific to popular invasion locations from the Watchdogs of Farran and the Aldrich Faithful covenant areas as well as other areas of the game most beneficial to Red Eye Orb invaders. Invading 101 To perform an invasion, a player must use an invasion item, or have an auto-summon covenant glyph equipped. In order for a host to be invaded, they have to be enkindled. This means the host likely has an HP advantage over the invader. The game matches invasions by putting invaders in a queue that that prioritizes invading worlds where the host has cooperative phantoms (other players). This is done to balance the difficulty offset by having extra players in the host's world. Unfortunately for the invader, this means that they are likely to encounter numerous players instead of one. Invaders not a part of the Mound -Makers may be attacked by the in-game enemies if the host has previously been invaded and has acquired a Seed of a Giant Tree. Invasion Items *Cracked Red Eye Orb *Red Eye Orb Auto-Invasion Covenants *Aldritch Faithful *Watchdogs of Farron Recommended Items No matter what your build type, there are items in the game that are highly recommended when invading. Item organization is very important. Ideally it should be as minimal as possible. The HUD D-pad Item bar should be restricted to healing items, throwable items, and perhaps a pine bundle. Having resins and stamina buffs available in your open menu option is more ideal than keeping it in your D-pad item bar as this can lead to accidental "grassing" instead of healing which may result in a failed invasion. The Undead Hunter Charm is a must to prevent the Host and their phantoms from healing. Duel Charms may or may not be beneficial depending on if the Host and their summons attack as a team. For a lone host who buffs, a Duel Charm can give you an advantage as their build is likely optimized around their weapon buff and they will not be as effective without it. For fighting a buffed host with paired weapons such as the Gotthard Twinswords or Onikiri and Ubadachi, a duel charm is highly recommended because the supplemental damage from the buff is applied equally to both weapons and increases the base damage considerably. Green Blossoms are recommended to keep your stamina regenerating as quickly as possible without having to resort to using a valuable ring slot on the Chloranthy Ring or wielding the Grass Crest Shield. Alluring Skulls will give the invader an advantage in places like the High Wall of Lothric and Lothric Castle as there are many hollow enemies attracted to the item. Careful use of this item can surround the host with enemies and make them an easy target for ranged attacks. Divine and Hidden blessings are also recommended to keep in the main menu hot bar. Although there is a limited supply of these items in-game. Use sparingly. Environment Consideration to the area of the invasion should be taken. For instance, if invading on the Road of Sacrifices it would be advantageous to equip Lightning Urns as they have a large AOE attack spread when thrown into water. Or if invading in the Catacombs of Carthus, an area with many drop-offs and pitfalls, equip the Silvercat Ring so the player character does not take damage from falling. Knowing the area of the invasion can be very helpful. Know the shortcuts, know the location of ladders, drop offs, groups of difficult enemies, etc.